Saturday, 1 June 2013

Do Rabbits Need Baths?

Do rabbits need baths is a very common question in which people ask. They are different to dogs, as you do need to bath your dog regularly.

To sum it up, I would say NO they don't. Here are some reasons why:

They only need bath if they are in a really bad condition in which for some reason they need to be cleaned up, yet this has to be done a certain way so make sure someone who knows what they ar e doing, is doing it.

They are absolutely terrified of water and I am not surprised by this as when they are in the wild, if in their burrow it gets flooded with water, it means they are going to die. This is an instinctual feature in which they have.

When you try to bath them, they will automatically panik, which makes it very difficult to actually wash them.

Short haired bunnies tend to be okay (this is breeds such as dutch) although long haired bunnies (such as lion head) can end up with parts of their fur matted and tangled, even sometimes sticky.

If this was to happen, then you should first of all try to do what is called a 'dry bath'. This is were you take baby cornstarch and put it onto the parts of your bunnies fur which needs cleaning. You then massage it into these areas which should help all of the dirt to them slide off of the fur and be removed from your bunnies.

Also, in pet shops, you can now purchase wipes in which you can do the same with. I have never used these before, yet they look like they would be good for long haired bunnies.

If you do need to bath them for some reason, you may want to consider asking a vet for assistance, as they will know how to do this.

It is a good idea to avoid giving your rabbit a bath as they will absolutely hate it.